Instructions In Life
by webofdreams89
Summary: And, for the first time, Zexion was questioning exactly what he had gotten himself into. Zemyx.
1. Chapter 1

**Authors's Notes: Okay, so I decided to post this. It's been sitting on my computer for a while and I had originally planned on postponing posting this until I finally finished Razorblade Shine, but I couldn't help but reconsider my decision. So here you go!**

**Summary: And, for the first time, Zexion was questioning what he had gotten himself into. Zemyx, rated M.  
****  
Disclaimer: I don't own. And now I shall go cry in the corner.**

o.O.o

**Instructions in Life  
Chapter 1: Meeting  
Completed on December 31, 2008**

o.O.o

The recovery process after a break up is a long and painful process, particularly if you are the party who gets offended or betrayed, cheated on, lied to, and overall, ends up with the raw end of the deal.

Zexion Schemer knows this feeling better than anyone.

He remembers quite clearly the day he walked in on boyfriend Marluxia and his co-worker rutting in his favorite position on the laboratory tables. He remembers the way anger welled up inside of him, seizing his mind completely as he set fire to more than two years worth of carefully calculated and researched lab notes. He remembers storming out of Hollow Bastion Pharmaceutical with more than just a chip on his shoulder.

But that was ages (i.e. weeks) ago by now, and Zexion likes to think that he has since moved on.

He is glad that he had the fortitude in his younger days to pursue a dual major in college against his advisors wishes because he has since quit his job at Hollow Bastion Pharmaceutical and placed an ad online through a thoroughly reputable organization offering his services.

Right now, Zexion wishes he could smack you for immediately jumping to the conclusion that his _services_ are something perverted and obscene. He recommends you pull your overly large head from the overly despicable gutter that you have shoved it in.

No, the services that Zexion advertised on the internet is for _tutoring._

You see, along with a degree in research medicine, he acquired a degree in general education. Education was always his fall back, his second choice, but at this point in his life, teaching someone something seemed by far preferable than researching cures for a rare strand of the flu because it most certainly did not come along with rather painful and otherwise unnecessary memories.

Zexion is a rather practical young man, only twenty-five you see, and believes a fresh start to be exactly what he needs to move on with his life. Especially after discovering his five year relationship with Marluxia to be a total and utter sham because Marluxia had been with Vexen _six_ years, thus making Zexion _the other woman._

The very next day after posting his resumee on the tutoring site, Zexion opens his email to discover request upon request for an interview. He deletes some of the rather obvious _nadas _and responds to two rather promising ones.

A woman asks for an interview at her home as soon as possible, tomorrow if Zexion can manage it. Zexion agrees, jotting down her address and noting that it is on Destiny Islands. Destiny Islands, although not particularly close to his home town of Hollow Bastion, is not an inconcieveable drive, taking perhaps forty minutes one way. It is a much longer drive than Zexion wishes for it to be on the road each day, but he feels that he cannot complain if the job itself is worth it.

He arrives at the interview five minutes early, knocking discreetly on the door at one o'clock sharp. He can hear someone approach the door, footfall heavy, before it is pulled open, revealing a blond middle aged man with a cigarette in his mouth.

"You the tutor?" the man asks. His face appears very worn and drawn, with obvious sleepless bags under each eye.

"I am," Zexion replies, sticking his hand out. "Zexion Schemer."

"Cid Highwind," the man replied. "Well, come on in. I imagine Sherra will be around shortly."

As Zexion stepped into the house, he could hear a faint _come on dear, so you can meet the tutor._ A pretty woman and a small young blond girl stepped into the living room where he had just taken a seat at Cid's encouraging.

"Hi," Sherra said, walking up to Zexion and shaking his hand quickly. "This is my daughter Namine. Say hi, Nami."

Zexion observed the girl for a moment, noting in his professional opinion that she was utterly adorable and would probably grow up to be something of a heartbreaker. She appeared very quiet, if just a touch timid and meek. Timid and meek Zexion could handle, but what he couldn't handle was—

"_Larxene!"_ Cid screamed, his cigarette in severe danger of falling from his mouth, as a small whirlwind burst through the living room.

The new addition stopped right in front of Zexion, who had precisely half a second to observe that she was somewhat older than Namine before the newcomer pulled her foot back and kicked him as hard as she could right in the shin.

Zexion let out a surprised yelp, jumping and bending to clutch his now throbbing leg.

"Oh my Gosh, I'm so sorry!" Sherra said quickly as Cid scooped Larxene up, trying to restrain the flailing girl.

After being bruised by a girl no older than seven, Zexion figured that the interview couldn't get much worse. But, as it is in all stories, he was so very, very wrong.

From there, he slipped on a water puddle in the middle of the kitchen as Sherra gave him a tour of the house, had a meatball flung at his forehead during the lunch the Highwinds invited him to eat, and had somehow proceeded to make Namine cry.

The first two he understood completely as to why they'd happened; he wasn't meant to work with for the Highwinds, but for the life of him, Zexion could not figure out how he had made the little girl cry.

She had been sitting across from him during lunch and, when he had caught the girl staring at him, he offered a rather uncharacteristic smile. And that's when the flood began.

Perhaps that was the problem, Zexion smiling. See, few people had ever seen it happen so it was a rare and notable event. Namine, being only that of five years old, did not know of the huge bequest that had been bestowed upon her.

Later on that night, after musing everything over, Zexion wondered if the reason he rarely smiled was _because _it made little girls cry. He stood in front of the mirror and tried to think of something, anything really, that was funny so he could see for himself what he looked like when he smiled. But all he managed was a rather constipated grimace that brought tears even to his own eyes.

As he had turned to leave the Highwind's home that day, Sherra stood by the door, staring at him, her eyes pleading, and proceeded to tell him that she would pay double what anyone else asked for if he agreed to take the job.

Zexion, very noncommitedly, told her that he would have to get back with her.

o.O.o

Over the next few days, Zexion interviewed with a few more families, all of which with there was something just a little bit strange, a little bit _off. _The Cunninghams were, in truth, okay people, but there son stared at Zexion's highly polished shoes far too much for his liking. Strike one. The Fairs, too, weren't bad if for the fact that the Mr. seemed like ingested far too much sugar. Strike two. Mrs. Leonhart was a very nice lady in Zexion's opinion, but the husband seemed just a tad too…_something_ for Zexion's liking and tended to only reply in one-syllabic answers that Zexion found completely frustrating. Strike three.

Zexion decided that he would allow one more strike of the utter _weirdness_ before he would give up. The interview with the Valentines was completely uncomfortable from the beginning. Zexion found the husband entirely creepy with his long black hair and weird sense of fashion, and he was beginning to think that the wife didn't exist at all until she made an appearance a good forty minutes into the interview, her face pale and tired looking and her long red hair wild and unkempt, making her look like some kind of zombie. The husband had informed Zexion that his wife was a _writer._ And Zexion understood immediately; this was _not_ the job for him.

He had nearly given up the hope of ever finding work when he hit the play button of his answering machine shortly after returning home from the interview with the Valentines.

After listening to drunken message from his college-aged younger brother Hayner, Zexion heard the message that would surely change his life.

"Hi," a slightly nervous voice said. "Um, my name is Demyx Nocturne and I was wondering if we could set up an interview. I saw your ad online and was, um, wowed by your credentials. You've probably already been hired by someone else by now, but I thought I'd give it a shot. If you could, call me back at …"

And Zexion sighed in relief, for some reason having a very good feeling (finally!) about this one.

o.O.o

They had set the interview up for two pm the next day.

Demyx Nocturne lived only one town over, in Twilight Town, a mere fifteen minute drive from Zexion's apartment. After pulling into the driveway of the address Demyx had given him over the phone the day before, Zexion walked up to the front door, his hands in his pockets.

As he made his way up the front steps, he noticed a small blond boy sitting on a porch swing, a book in his lap and sea salt ice cream in his hand. It was a warm day, and Zexion saw the boy scowl as some ice cream dripped upon a page.

"What are you reading?" Zexion asked the boy who hand only just noticed Zexion's presence.

The young boy looked up at Zexion, his eyes appraising. Zexion must have passed some kind of inspection because the boy nodded to himself almost imperceptibly before replying, "Peter Pan."

"That's a good one," Zexion replied. "I remember reading it when I was young."

"You're still young," the boy replied. "Although you _do_ have old people hair."

"_Roxas!"_ a voice from the door hissed. "Don't say meanie things like that to people! You know Daddy doesn't like it when you say meanie things to people!"

Another young boy came stomping out the screen door, flinging himself in the chair next to his brother and stealing a lick from the ice cream before the one named Roxas shoved the rest of it in his mouth.

Staring at the two boys, Zexion saw them to nearly identical except that the newcomer had hair that more chocolately than wheat, and was more tanned.

"Sora, I wasn't done combing your hair!" another voice said from the doorway, in the exact spot Sora had occupied only a moment prior. "Oh! You're here!"

Opening the front door, Zexion noted that the man was also blond, his hair cut in such a fashion Zexion had never before seen, eyes cerulean and deepset. His shoulders were also wide, waist narrow and he was several inches taller than Zexion.

But he was young, very young, several years younger looking than even Zexion.

"Well, come in, come in!" the man said, holding the door out for Zexion to catch. Once Zexion was inside, the man poked his head back out the door and said to the boys, "You guys stay right here, you hear me? Do not leave this porch, not even if Axel or Riku come over and beg you go. Got it?"

Zexion heard both boys murmur their respective _yeses_, and the man turned back around, allowing the screen door to shut softly behind him.

They stood staring at each other uncomfortably, Zexion wondering where the boys' father was because surely this had to be their older brother; he was just so young.

"Well, I'm Demyx," the man said after a moment, sticking his hand out for Zexion to shake. "You already met Roxas and Sora, I see. I'm not sure how these things normally work, but why don't we go sit in the living room, okay?"

So, indeed, this was the boys' father.

After taking a seat on the couch, Demyx asked, "Is there anything I can get you? I just made up a pitcher of lemonade. It would probably be wise to get some before the boys discover I made it and drink it all."

"Well, okay then," Zexion said, finding himself smiling at the man for some unfathomable reason. Demyx returned his smile briefly before turning around and heading, presumably, into the kitchen.

Zexion took the time to look around the living room. It was very neatly furnished, everything in shades of blue, and very obviously decorated by a man. There were photographs of the twins and Demyx sitting atop the mantle, the boys in various ages. Two more recent portraits hung above the fire place where paintings of landscapes and people's dogs usually resided.

On a small end table in the far corner of the room, Zexion saw another photograph, different from the rest. In it, Demyx sat staring up at the photographer, his arm wrapped around a very pretty girl with long red hair and a kind smile. She was gazing at up at Demyx and Zexion knew the look she had in her eye as it was one he had seen on his own face in photographs when looking at a special someone: adoration, complete and total love and affection.

"That's Ariel," Demyx said, re-entering the living room with two large glasses of lemonade in hand, handing one to Zexion before taking a seat. "She was the boys' mother."

Zexion took note of the _was_ in Demyx's statement and discreetly chose not to comment. It wasn't his place.

"Well," Zexion said after a moment, Demyx's eyes tearing away from the photograph with a small, slightly guilty smile. "We should probably begin the interview."

"You're right," Demyx replied softly, setting his glass atop a coaster on the coffee table. "Heh, like I said before, I'm not exactly sure how these things work, so…?"

"Alright," Zexion replied, slightly taken aback. All the other interviews he'd had, the parents (with the possible exception of the Highwinds) were all very organized, very thorough in interviewing him. Zexion wasn't necessarily upset by this change in pace, just a little thrown by it. "You saw my resumee online, I presume."

"Oh yes, I did!" Demyx squeaked, his apparent nervousness still not having worn off. "Your resumee looked very good. I saw that you had done student teaching before deciding to work in research."

Zexion nodded, slightly more at ease now that Demyx was picking up some of the slack.

"If I may ask, why exactly did you decide to switch careers?"

And again, the blood pumping through Zexion's veins began to boil. But it wasn't towards Demyx, not by a long shot. Zexion found it hard to be angry at people whom were simply curious. Nope, all the blame lay on Marluxia and that snake Vexen.

Demyx saw the flicker of agitation in Zexion, saw the subtle paling of his cheeks. "I'm sorry," he replied quickly. "Sometimes I don't exactly think before I say things. If it doesn't directly pertain to the boys, or affect then in any way, then I am probably out of bounds."

"No," Zexion said, gritting his teeth slightly, but not, perhaps, as much as he would have a month ago, or even one week ago. "No, you have every right to be curious. If I may someday be tutoring your children, then you should have a thorough background of me.

"I will not lie to you either. I was in a long relationship that ended suddenly. I found it difficult to work there any longer and decided a change in career might actually do me some good. And if tutoring doesn't work out, my old boss told me that I could always have my job back."

"Oh, well okay. Sometimes my imagination gets the better of me. I was imagining, well, you really don't want to _know_ what I was imagining." Demyx smiled cheekily at him for a moment before taking another swig of his lemonade.

A little while later, after they had been discussing Zexion's resumee in further detail, Zexion inquired, "May I ask why you decided to hire a tutor for Sora and Roxas?"

"Well, both of the boys have problems in school and I didn't feel that they were getting as much out of their educations as they could. They're both very intelligent, but they just…well, Sora has ADHD and has a lot of trouble sitting still for more than a minute, especially in a classroom full of students where the sole focus isn't on him. And Roxas, he has a bit of an…attitude towards some people, particularly ones that he does not like. Especially because he feels that it is his job to look after Sora, who gets himself into a lot of trouble somehow or another.

"Their teacher suggested that hiring an after-school tutor would most definitely help improve their school work and behavior."

Three boys came running into the house then, Sora and two others Zexion didn't recognize. "Daddy, Daddy!" Sora said jumping up and down while standing before his father. "Riku and Axel came over to play, and we were on the porch like you said for us to, but then we got hungry! And Roxas wouldn't share his ice cream, so I tried eating some anyway and it fell on the ground! Can you make us some fooooooood!"

And somehow, the boy managed to say it in all one breath.

"Of course," Demyx said, smiling down at his young son fondly. His eyes snapped up. "Axel, how many times do I have to tell you not to steal your brother's matches and bring them to our home. I can assure you that Roxas isn't impressed with your obsession."

"But Demyx!" the taller of the two boys said, his hair fire engine red and eyes a flashing emerald. "Roxas just likes to pretend that fire isn't cool!"

"Demyx, Sora's tummy is growling," the other new boy said. He had longish silver hair, bangs falling into turquoise eyes.

"I know, I know," Demyx said, beginning to stand up.

A shriek was then heard from outside. And in stomped Roxas. "Dad!" he said, waving _Peter Pan_ around before him. "Look what Axel did to my book! He dropped it in the ice cream that fell and didn't even pick it up! Now it's ruined and I was just getting to the part about the pirates!"

"Roxas, it'll be okay, we can get you a new one then next time we go to the store."

"Dad, I'm hungry!"

His face helpless, Demyx turned to Zexion. "I'm sorry about all of this. Can you start Monday?"

o.O.o

Zexion heard the phone ringing as he unlocked his front door. Moving a bit more quickly, he had the door open and had the phone answered in under twelve seconds.

"Hello?" he said into the receiver. He hadn't the time to even bother to look at the caller id to see who it was.

"_Zexion?"_ a snifflely voice said into the phone. _"Zexion, are you there?"_

"Yes, Hayner, it's me. Who else would it be? And why didn't you just call me on my cell phone?"

"_Well, I didn't know if Marluxia could be-"_

"I have told you countless times, Hayner, that Marluxia and I broke up quite a while ago by now."

"_I know, I know, but I know you, and thought that maybe you would forgive him by now and get back together. Scratch that, if he wronged you, you'd never forgive him, would you?"_

Zexion sighed, used to the prattle of his younger brother. "So why is it that you called?" he asked. "I thought you had a big exam to study for."

"_Well, I do, but I'm taking a little break. And Olette broke up with me again. She told me that-" _

But at that point, Zexion tuned it all out. He could hardly keep track of the rollercoaster of a relationship Hayner had with his on-again, off-again girlfriend Olette. She was pretty brunette the same age as Hayner, with bright green eyes and an easy smile. Zexion liked her well enough, and was hoping that she would give his brother some sense of stability, but he feared it was only getting worse.

He knew that Olette loved his brother, that was the reason they were always getting back together, but she had as hard a time as any of dealing with Hayner, who was intelligent, but often didn't take the time to think. He was pure emotion ninety-nine percent of the time and was quick to grow jealous, and more than a little possessive and controlling.

Zexion just wished he could have a dollar for every time he heard the words _Olette broke up with me…_

He would be a very rich man indeed.

Zexion, of course, murmured the appropriate responses, them having been engraved into his brain from excessive usage. _Oh, I'm sorry Hayner, I'm sure things will work out. Oh, don't worry, Hayner, Olette will come to her senses. No, Hayner, she will never like Seifer the way she loves you, so don't worry about it, she knows he's scum._

After sobbing into Zexion's ear for a good half hour, all of which Zexion used to prepare himself a sandwich, eat it, check his email, sweep the kitchen floor, and get the mail from the box, Hayner finally let out a shaky breath and asked, _"So what's been going on with you lately? Are you sure that Marluxia hasn't gotten a hold of you?"_

Zexion's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean _gotten a hold of me?_ Why, has he been bothering you again? Program his number into your cell phone like I told you to and just hit ignore every time he calls."

"_I did, Zexion, but then he leaves these messages in my voice mail about how sorry he is and how much he misses you. You know I can't deal with stuff like that. So after he left about ten of those sad little messages, I kind of, sort of _calledhimbackandsaidI'dgetyoutocallhim!"

"You. What?" Zexion asked, a twitch beginning to form in his left eye.

Hayner let out a shaky laugh. _"I called him back and said that I'd get you to call him."_

"Yeah, I got that. The question is _why?!_ Why would you do that when he was an ass hole to me. You're my brother, god damn it, you're supposed to be on _my_ side."

"_Zexion, I am on your side, but he's one persuasive ass hole and you know how I cave."_

Zexion talked to his younger brother another ten minutes, all the while trying not to get angry at him. After readily assuring Hayner that, no he wasn't angry with him, he hung up and flung the phone viciously across the room. It was lucky that he had never been all that great at throwing things, and the phone landed on the couch with a _whush!_

He walked into the kitchen and poured himself a small glass of rum, grimacing as it went down. He thought back on his conversation with his brother and his mind wandered back to the sly smile Demyx had given him earlier when he was imagining exactly why Zexion had left his job at Hollow Bastion Pharmaceutical to become a tutor. He mused that Demyx probably wasn't all that much older that his brother, and it made him a little sad, especially when he thought of the way Demyx had been staring at the photograph of Sora and Roxas' mother.

Feeling a bit more liberated after a few more glasses of rum, Zexion pulled his cell phone from his pocket and quickly dialed Marluxia's number. Zexion couldn't decide if whether or not he was angry when the voice mail picked up.

Feeling his nerve rise, Zexion said, "You really need to stop calling my brother. He's got enough going on now as it is and doesn't need _you_ to continue bothering him. If you wanted to talk to me so badly, then you should have called, okay? Stop harassing my family and stop harassing me."

And he hung up.

Zexion didn't usually promote sloth and laziness, but he cut himself a little slack that night, completely upset now by Marluxia, who was still harassing his brother and wouldn't, apparently, leave Zexion alone. Some time later, he checked his cell phone and saw that he had one new voice mail.

"_Would you have really answered the phone if I had called, Zexion? I don't think so. I just wanted to hear your voice again, that's all. I'll stop calling your brother if you start picking up when I call you, alright? I'll talk to you later. Good-bye Zexion."_

He decided to hit the bottle a little harder.

At midnight, Zexion heard someone knocking at his door. And he was beyond pissed. His head was still spinning from all the rum he had consumed and he just wanted desparately to sleep. Huffily, he swung his legs over the side of the bed and bent to pick up his discarded shirt and jeans, pulling them on rather difficultly as he made his way to the door.

He didn't even bother looking through the peep hole, already figuring it to be Hayner looking for a place to sleep away from Olette for the night. But if he had looked, he never would have opened the door.

When he did, he saw Marluxia standing there, his long hair pulled back in a ponytail, jeans hugging his hips and a black blazer covering his upper body.

"Well don't you smell like a liquor store, Zexion," he commented, his mouth curling up into an amused smile. His arms were crossed and his blue eyes were filled with something that resembled an obvious joy at the current situation.

"And don't you look like Satan incarnate," Zexion muttered.

Marluxia chuckled. "You know, you could very well be right, Zexion. You never really know."

Zexion chose to ignore this comment. "What are you doing here?" Zexion asked, sighing and wanting nothing more than to go back to sleep.

"You know why I'm here, Zexion," he murmured, his voice going husky. "I miss you."

"Well I miss you just about as much as I miss walking in on you and Vexen fucking on my research table."

"Touché," Marluxia said, smiling at him. "But you know that was a mistake. You know that I love you most."

"See, that's where the problem lies, Marluxia," Zexion replied, having to take a special effort not to slur his words into a cluster fuck of a mess. "You should have loved _only_ me, but you didn't."

Marluxia remained silent then, staring at the shorter man for a moment before stepping forward and lightly touching the side of Zexion's face. "I know," he said finally, his eyes piercing into Zexion's. "Believe me, I know it now."

And Zexion wasn't sure how their clothes had come off and they wound up in his bed. He wasn't sure how Marluxia had convinced him into sleeping with him before he drifted back off into an actual deep, deep sleep.

The next time Zexion woke up (it really was Hayner at the door looking for a place to sleep), he wasn't sure if Marluxia being there had been real or simply a dream.

o.O.o

In the end, it was Demyx he decided to take the job for.

The choice was obvious, really. Demyx was the only one who seemed any semblance of normal, and Zexion sympathized with him for raising two young boys on his own. Not to mention Demyx, from what he had seen the other night, was absolutely gorgeous and would probably prove to be a mighty fine distraction in forgetting about Marluxia.

After getting off the phone with Demyx the next morning in which he confirmed that he would, indeed, take the tutoring job, he walked out into his living room and saw his brother still sleeping on his couch, mouth flung wide open and arms wrapped almost possessively around one of the many couch pillows that typically adorned Zexion's couch.

Pulling his cell phone from his pocket, Zexion snapped a picture before quickly putting his cell back away, grinning slightly to himself as he walked into the kitchen to get himself another cup of coffee. His head was pounding slightly around his temples, a headache, but not enough to have him moaning and groaning in his bed at the pain of it.

He began making a breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, and toast, setting plates out on his tiny kitchen table before walking back into the living room, yanking the comforter from off his younger brother's body.

"Breakfast time," he said as Hayner shot up, shock on his face.

"What the _hell,_ Zexion!" he said, giving his brother a dirty look.

"I went to the trouble of making breakfast for you and all you can do is yell at me," Zexion said, unable to keep the amusement from his voice that he was usually so good at hiding. It really wasn't his fault if Hayner brought out the playful side in him.

"Breakfast?" Hayner asked, an easy grin falling on his face as, right on cue, his stomach let out a thunderous growl.

"Yep, that's what I said. Now get into the kitchen before it all gets cold." Hayner jumped up from him makeshift bed and began sprinting to the kitchen. "And put some clothes on first. I really do _not_ need to see you running my apartment in only your underwear."

His brother threw him a rather shit-eating grin before picking up his jeans and shirt from where they lay on the floor, quickly putting them on and heading back to the kitchen. He still beat Zexion there, already sitting down and scooping generous helpings of everything before digging in.

o.O.o

Zexion showed up at the Nocturne household at precisely 3:30 on Monday afternoon. He had somehow managed to convince his brother that he needed to go back to school and study for his exam some more before contacting Olette. He received a call the next day from his brother informing him that the two were indeed back together and going strong.

Since then, Zexion had been on his own. He was happy that Marluxia hadn't tried contacting him again, which gave him a very clear and level head when he showed up at Demyx's house that Monday.

He had arrived even before Demyx was home from picking his sons up from school, waiting patiently on the front porch with his messenger bag at his feet. He was dressed smartly in a slightly loose fitting black button down shirt and fitted dark blue jeans that clung to his hips. Zexion still felt as if he was too dressed up for his job, tutoring two six year olds, but couldn't bring himself to wear anything more casual; he was too used to wearing slacks and button downs under his pristine white lab coat at Hollow Bastion Pharmaceutical to be breaking his habit of dressing up so quickly.

He had even shined his shoes before leaving the house.

Demyx pulled into the driveway less than fifteen minutes later, his blue car pulling in next to Zexion's black one. "Hey," he said merrily as he stepped from his car, shutting the door behind him and moving to walk around the car to help his sons out. Zexion murmured a greeting in response, grinning to himself oh so slightly as the back of Demyx's shirt rose up ever so slightly as he walked.

"I can get my own seat belt, Dad," Roxas said, glaring up at his dad in a way that informed Zexion that Roxas did not enjoy being treated like a child.

Sora was a different story.

"You can help me, Daddy!" he said. Zexion even saw the boy put his seatbelt back on so Demyx could help him out of the vehicle.

Slamming his door shut from where he had been sitting in the passenger seat, Roxas slung his book bag over his back and marched up the stairs and onto the porch, taking the seat next to Zexion on the porch swing.

"How are you today, Roxas?" Zexion asked.

"Fine," Roxas said, crossing his skinny arms over his chest with a sigh. After remembering that he was supposed to act grown up, he turned to Zexion and asked, "And how are you, Mr. Schemer?"

Zexion cracked a smile. "I'm also fine. And you can call me Zexion if you wish to since you aren't in school."

Roxas smiled a little, obviously pleased that he was on a first name basis with an adult.

Sora came running up the stairs then, not stopping until he stood right in front of Zexion. "Can I call you Zexion, too?" he asked with a large grin.

"Sora, don't be rude," Roxas said quickly.

"No harm done," Zexion replied. "And yes, you can call me Zexion if you would like to."

"Yay!" Sora said, jumping in the air with one fist pumping. He hugged his brother quickly before darting back around their father.

"You didn't have to get here so early, Zexion," Demyx said with a grin as Sora began clinging to one of his legs.

Standing up, Zexion replied, "Truthfully, I didn't know how the traffic would be this time a day so I left early, but there was almost no one on the roads between here and Hollow Bastion."

Unlocking the front door, Demyx said, "Well, I'm just going to feed the boys a snack before you guys get started. Do you mind if I watch this first session? So I know what's going on?"

"No, that would be perfectly alright," Zexion replied, slinging his bag across his shoulder. He didn't have children, but he could understand Demyx's concerns about someone he barely knew spending alone time with his sons, and he didn't blame the blond in the least.

o.O.o

"Well, what do you think?" Zexion asked Demyx as he gathered up his papers from the dining room table. He had gone about the standard procedure when becoming a tutor and had even contacted Sora and Roxas' school requesting copies of the student's books and worksheets and other things. Of course, Demyx and the school's principal had to sign a written consent, but things were going quite smoothly now. He had even contacted their first grade teacher, who filled him in on some of the things to watch out for concerning the Nocturne twins.

He found that he thoroughly enjoyed teaching them too, not having any of the problems the teacher had described to him. Sora was calm and attentive and Roxas hadn't shown even a whisper of an attitude all afternoon. What he probably liked best though, was the fact that the twins were incredibly smart and seemed to absorb his every word and retain everything he said.

Demyx's presence during the session hadn't seemed to affect the learning process as Zexion feared that it might. But he mused later on that Demyx's presence in the room had probably helped in keeping the boys calm.

Demyx offered Zexion a quick smile before he said, "I think things went extremely well. The boys seem to like you a lot, which I'm glad for. Roxas rarely warms up to people that quickly and Sora seems to adore you already." He was silent for a moment, his face thoughtful, before he added, "I think this is really going to work, Zexion, I really do."

"Well, I'm glad about that! I'd hate to have to start looking for a new job already," Zexion replied, placing all of his materials in his bag before closing it and slinging it over his shoulder. "Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Wait!" Demyx said when Zexion was about halfway to the front door. Demyx looked slightly nervous for a moment before he added, "How would you like to stay for dinner? I mean, it will take a little while to prepare and it won't be much, but I think it will be a good idea for us to get to know each other better. You know, because you'll be spending so much time here and all. With my sons, teaching my sons."

Zexion thought about it a moment, choosing not to comment on Demyx's ramblings, and decided that staying with a real family eating real food far beat having to cook a meal for just himself. "Alright, that sounds good. Very good, actually."

Demyx's face broke out into a smile of relief. "Well, I'm not sure what you can do until dinner is ready, but the computer is over there…"

"Actually, if it's okay, could I help prepare dinner. My younger brother says that I'm a wonder with a knife, but then again, that boy would starve if I didn't feed him whenever he showed up on my doorstep."

Demyx laughed, leading the way to the kitchen. "How old is your brother?" he asked conversationally, grabbing a pair of scissors from a drawer to cut open the package of chicken breasts that had been thawing on the counter.

"He's twenty-one," Zexion replied as he watched Demyx moved practicedly around the kitchen. "A senior in college, though he spends more time in my apartment than his dorm a lot of the time. Probably because he knows I'll take pity on him."

Demyx laughed. "I can't imagine my brother ever just showing up here and demanding me to feed him. But then again, he had that completely psychotic boyfriend of his to take care of him."

In truth, Demyx was testing Zexion's reaction, trying to gauge it to see if he was at all disgusted or disturbed that Demyx's brother was gay. Zexion's face remained the same impassive it had been all afternoon, with not even a flicker of emotion to give him away.

Ever since they had met only a few days ago, Zexion had been on Demyx's mind constantly and he was having the toughest of times trying to figure out if the man was gay or not. Or, even, if he could be turned gay or bi or whatever.

Last week he had said he'd left his last job because of a long relationship ending, but he hadn't said that, say, he broke up with his longtime girlfriend or anything.

It was frustrating Demyx so much because he just didn't _know_.

"What makes you say your brother's boyfriend is psychotic?" Zexion asked after a moment, hoping that he wasn't overstepping any bounds.

Demyx seemed to take it in stride, however, and he was relieved.

"Well, it's just that he's so damned possessive, practically choking him off from anything and everyone else. He rarely ever lets him even come over here to visit his own brother and nephews. Sephiroth just a…well, kind of an asshole."

Zexion proceeded to choke on his own saliva then. "Sephiroth you say," he said after he had calmed down a bit. "That would make Cloud your brother then."

"Yeah," Demyx said, frowning slightly. "Why, do you know them?"

"Yes, I went to college with both of them. Sephiroth was actually the one that set me up with Marluxia to begin with."

Zexion had dated a man, making him at least a little bit gay, giving Demyx at least a smidgen of hope.

And just like that, Demyx's day was made. That is, until a thought dawned on him. According to Sephiroth, one of Marluxia's best friends, Marluxia had just gotten out of a long relationship of several _years._ Zexion had just said he'd gotten out of a long relationship and had admitted to having dated Marluxia.

It was just too much of coincidence, Zexion had to be the ex that Sephiroth had been talking about.

And if it was a long relationship Zexion had just gotten out of like he claimed, then it would take a long time for him to heal as he knew he and Marluxia couldn't have broken up all that long ago.

Demyx was just glad that the school year had just begun, giving him ample time to try and win the older man over.

"You dated Marluxia?" Demyx asked, hoping not to push Zexion too much, but too damned curious to resist.

Zexion sighed, his eyes shifting away. "Yeah," he admitted, "he was actually the reason I quit my last job. Mar had cheated on me with one of my co-workers and I didn't feel like seeing him all the time."

_Well Sephiroth had left that little tidbit out, Demyx thought with a wince_, wondering why on earth someone would cheat on the man before him who seemed nothing short of perfect, so composed and mature and _fucking_ easy on the eyes. But then again, Demyx, being that he was already quite taken with the man, was probably a little biased.

"I'm so sorry," Demyx murmured. He had finally gotten the chicken from the packaging, placing them on a plate.

"Don't worry about," Zexion said, his eyes shifting back up to Demyx. "It was probably one of the best things that ever happened to me, now that I think about. It got me away from someone who was completely unstable and gave me an opportunity to start over in life. I wasn't very happy before."

Opening the fridge up, Demyx withdrew a bottle of bar-b-q sauce. "Well, I'm glad for that otherwise I would still be looking for a tutor for my boys. A bit selfish, I know, but nonetheless true. Well, since it's nice out, I think we'll be grilling these. Do you like bar-b-q?"

Zexion nodded, following Demyx out the back door and onto the patio where the grill was located. He stood by, watching as Demyx made preparations on the grill for the meat.

A flicker of worry filled him then. "It doesn't bother you, does it?" he asked. "That I'm gay?"

Demyx turned to him suddenly, so suddenly that he nearly dropped the bottle of bar-b-q sauce that he was currently slathering on pieces of chicken before setting on the rack of the grill. "Why should it?" Demyx asked, trying to keep his voice calm. "I already told you that my brother is gay, and it doesn't bother me at all." But he left unsaid: _not to mention the fact that I'm gay, have known you only a few days but still want most desperately in your pants._

Zexion let out a visible sigh of relief. "I'm glad. I had been worrying about whether or not it would be an issue, wondering if I should just come out and say it or not. In the end, I had decided against it, but I see now that it wasn't a problem."

"Nope, no problem," Demyx said, grinning to himself as he turned so his back faced Zexion once again.

A few minutes later the two of them were in the kitchen chopping vegetables for dinner. Zexion was given the task of cutting potatoes into cubes to fry up and Demyx was chopping vegetables for the salad that they would also be having with dinner.

Sora and Roxas wandered in at some point, Sora bouncing up and down wondering when the food would be done. _Soon_, Demyx had told him with a patient smile.

Roxas, however, had just taken a seat at the breakfast bar in the kitchen and stared at the two adults with something that resembled a dawning comprehension. Zexion raised an eyebrow, wondering what the boy was thinking about, but decided to shrug it off.

They ate a short while later, Sora chatting amiably about everything he had done that day, starting with the moment he woke up in the morning. Demyx had calmly chided him, but it seemed to have no effect whatsoever on Sora's chattiness. Zexion didn't mind it in the least, however, finding it rather interesting to listen to a six year old's take on things. He hadn't been around children very much lately, so it was something of a treat to be able to listen to one, although, now that he had this joy, he would find himself around children more and more often.

The two boys from the other day, Axel and Riku, showed up at the front door just as they were finishing dinner. Demyx had let the two boys go with a smile.

"Well, I guess I'll see you tomorrow, Zexion," Demyx said, gathering up the plates.

"Would you like me to stay and help clean up?" he asked, a small frown on his face.

"No, I wouldn't put you through that. Believe me, now with the neighbor boys here, the boys will begin to get a bit more rowdy. But it's nothing I can't handle."

"Well, okay," Zexion said, again grabbing his bag from where he had left it earlier. "See you tomorrow. Good-bye."

"Bye," Demyx said, sending him one last look before taking the plates out into the kitchen.

Zexion was nearly to his car when he heard a noise behind him. Thinking it to be only one of the four boys that now occupied the Nocturne residence, he turned in time to see a flash of black before he was staring up at the sky from his back.

A sharp pain ran through is elbow from where it hit the pavement. He tried shaking it off so he could stand, but a weight on his chest prevented this. Swinging his eyes, he saw that what was on him was…a girl.

She was probably in her early twenties, with fairly short dark hair and large brown eyes. She glared down at him and stated vehemently, "I am the Great Ninja Yuffie! I am this neighborhood's eyes, ears, and iron fist! I know everything that goes on here, so just who the fuck are _you?"_

Glaring right back at the girl, Zexion hissed, "I'd be all too happy to tell you who I am, if you'd just _get off_ of me."

"Oh, right," the girl, Yuffie, replied, clambering off his chest and sticking her arm out to help him up. She didn't think that he was much of a threat, especially because he wasn't all that tall and was just scrawny skin and bones.

Zexion took her hand and was hauled to his feet with much more force than he would have guessed her to possess. Rubbing at his elbow, which he discovered was bleeding, seeping from a hole that now occupied the sleeve of his shirt, he stated, "My name is Zexion Schemer and Mr. Nocturne hired me as a tutor for his sons."

"A likely story!" Yuffie said even though she believed the man. He was so small and pale that he could be nothing _but_ a teacher, or perhaps a scientist.

"It's true," Zexion insisted. "You can march right on inside and confirm it if you wish."

"Nah," she said with a shrug, "I believe you."

"Then why did you-" he began before getting cut off.

"I was testing you! Your pathetically weak," she informed him. "But anyway, you should be happy to know that you passed my test!"

"Thrilled to hear it," Zexion muttered sarcastically.

Yuffie chose to ignore this. "There's something you should know since you'll be spending quite a bit of time in this neighborhood. We're protective over what's ours, and Demyx and the twins are something that's ours. We usually don't like outsiders. And you being an outsider, should really heed my warning when I say don't _fuck with us."_

Before Zexion could say that he didn't really want to fuck with anyone, Yuffie continued on, "And especially don't fuck with Demyx. I've known him all my life and know that he's had it rough, always has. That ass hole dad of his walked out on him when he and his brother Cloud were little. Their mom died when Demyx was fourteen. Luckily, Cloud was eighteen and able to take custody of him so they wouldn't be separated. And then Demyx knocked up Ariel when he was only sixteen and she died right after that!

"But Demyx is one of us, so he _is_ tough! He's raised those boys all by himself and even fought Ariel's dad when he tried to take custody of the boys. Don't let his calm demeanor and cheery smile deceive you! If you mess with him, Demyx _will_ rip you a new one! He'll go Incredible Hulk on you, I swear it!"

With that, Yuffie turned to leave. And Zexion could only stand there with his jaw dropped. He wasn't really sure what he was more startled to hear, the fact that Yuffie was somehow insisting Demyx to be the Hulk in terms of losing his temper and, well, you know, or the fact that Demyx was so young when he became a father. Only sixteen years old.

But Zexion thought Demyx to be doing quite well for himself for having been a teen parent who lost his girlfriend, parents, but won his children.

As he walked the rest of the way to his car, he saw Yuffie across the street, hiding in some poor person's bushes. She made the universal _I'm watching you_ sign before ducking completely into the bush.

And for the first time, Zexion questioned what he had gotten himself into.

o.O.o

**A/N: Be kind and leave a review, will ya?**

**webofdreams89**


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes: I apologize again and again for the huuuuuuuuuge delay in updates. I realize that it has been something like, um, seven months or so since I first posted the first chaper of this story. I'm not going to waste your time with excuses. Just know that I am sorry and will try, try, try to get the third chapter up much sooner. Also, I haven't yet decided how long this story is going to be, but I don't forsee it being more that five or six chapters. I have the outline all worked out already, but I am not yet sure how many chapters it is going to amout to. So stay tuned!**

o.O.o

**Instructions in Life  
Chapter 2: Knowing  
completed on July 2, 2009**

o.O.o

The next day, Zexion, before he could even form his knuckles into a fist to knock on the door, was bombarded by a completely apologetic (and slightly frantic looking) Demyx. After opening the door quickly, Demyx, face remorseful and just a touch frightened, said, "I am so _sorry_, Zexion."

Not knowing how to reply to that statement, let alone knowing what exactly Demyx was referring to, Zexion raised an eyebrow.

Demyx saw this confusion and sighed in visible relief. If _the incident_ hadn't been weighing on Zexion's mind as he approached the door to tutor his sons, then it probably wasn't as big of a deal as Demyx had originally thought.

"About Yuffie," he added, explaining.

Zexion merely looked at him before nodding his head just once and shrugging, a wry sort of look plastered across his face. "Well, I _did_ learn some valuable information from her," he said.

It was Demyx's turn to raise an eyebrow.

Stepping inside Demyx's home as the blond made room for him before closing the door, Zexion went on. "Yes, she informed me that if I do something that you don't agree with, you will turn into the Incredible Hulk."

"Did she now?" Demyx asked with a little laugh, just glad that Zexion didn't appear to be completely traumatized from the incident.

"She sure did. I just hope that if it comes down to it, you'll allow me the chance to explain myself before you, and I quote, rip me a new one."

"Oh no," Demyx said, putting a hand to his forehead. "Oh no, did she really say that?"

Zexion nodded. "She also said that this neighborhood doesn't much tolerate outsiders so I should, in essence, watch my back. And I think she was spying on me as I walked up to your front door today, by the way."

"Well," Demyx said, torn between amusement by Yuffie's actions and utter embarrassment, "I can assure you that she's harmless. Or if she will be after I tell her to leave you alone."

"Good to know," Zexion said, placing his bag on the dining room table as he had the day before. Roxas was already seated at the table, his school books and homework placed before him in a neat little pile. Sora's belongings were also on the table, but strewn about, the boy himself no where to be seen.

Just as Zexion was about to ask Demyx where the boy was, Sora came tearing into the room, his little body slamming into Zexion as the man felt two arms wrap themselves around him.

"I'm so glad you're back!" Sora squealed, clutching Zexion's legs tightly. "I missed you all day, Zexion! Normal school is no fun now!"

Demyx gazed down at his son, an amused look upon his face. He watched as Sora let go of Zexion just as quickly as he had slammed into him, running to his seat and tipping his chair over in his haste. Demyx righted it before excusing himself from the room.

The days quickly melded into weeks and Demyx could see a big transformation in his children. Sora had calmed greatly down and Roxas had opened up. And the reports he was receiving from their school teacher made the man glow with pride, giving him the ease of knowing that they were finally alright, that they were going to make it as a family.

Since the boys were born, that had been his biggest fear, that something else would happen and everything would just fall apart. It meant a lot to him to hear from his brother that he was proud of Demyx, but for some reason, the dawning comprehension that Cloud was right meant more, the realization that he could do this, be a good father even if he was young, work and provide for them. And it meant the absolute world to him whenever his boy's told Demyx that they loved him.

Another thing that had been weighing heavily on Demyx's mind of late was Zexion. Each and every day Demyx could feel himself falling for the man a little more, a little harder. Seeing him every day with his son's, teaching them and showing them a few of the ropes of life made him envision a future where Zexion became a permanent fixture in the household.

Don't get me wrong, Demyx knew at this point it was just a crush, but he could feel it quickly turning into something else, something more overwhelming and complicated.

But Demyx was unsure of exactly what love felt like as he had never been in it. Back in high school when he and Ariel dated, it hadn't been a typical relationship. Ariel was his best friend whom he had met when he first began swimming for a team when he was just a little kid. And Demyx had always known that he preferred guys over girls. Ariel had known as well, and it hadn't really mattered. In fact, at the time they began dating, Demyx had had a crush on another boy on his Blitzball team, Tidus.

Demyx had loved her, and it hurt worse than anything else he had ever experienced when she'd died, but he had never loved her the way he should have.

But being within the proximity of Zexion each and every weekday, who seemed so blasted oblivious to it all, was becoming taxing because he didn't think the man would, or was ready to, reciprocate his feelings.

It didn't really matter though. Zexion coming over to tutor his sons, the hours he was in Demyx's home, had quickly become his favorite part of the day. And this fact was obvious to everyone but the object of Demyx's affections. And possibly Sora.

One day while stopping over unannounced, Demyx's older brother Cloud sat on the couch, gazing upon his brother for a moment before asking, "What's his name?"

"W-what?" Demyx asked, his gaze ripping sharply away from the spot he had been staring at the carpet. "What are you talking about, Cloud?"

"The reason that you're practically glowing right now, as positively gay as that sounds. What's his name?"

The faint blush on Demyx's cheeks grew to a rosy red, his eyes skidding away from his brother's. "Um, well, it's the tutor that I hired for the boys. And I think that you actually know him."

"I know him?" Cloud asked as Demyx nodded, still avoiding making eye contact.

"Well Sephiroth does probably more than you do. It's Marluxia's ex. Zexion."

"Wait," Cloud said, sitting up, "the tutor that you hired for the boys is _Zexion? _And you fell in love with him?"

"That about sums it up," Demyx said sheepishly. "Yep, sounds about right to me."

"Well, have you told him how you feel?" Cloud asked curiously.

Demyx merely shook his head. "Not yet."

"What are you waiting for, Demyx? Armageddon? If you love him, he should know. Everyone deserves to know that they are loved. What's stopping you from telling him?"

Demyx grew frustrated then, wondering why his brother wasn't being more specific. "Oh gee, I don't know. Everything? For one, he's my _employee_, which is wrong on so many levels. For two, I have the boys to think of. They have to be my first priority no matter who I fancy. For three, he just got out of a long relationship with your boyfriend's best friend. For four, I highly doubt that he reciprocates my feelings and he's just to formal and…uptight to ever even consider dating his boss."

Cloud was quiet for a moment, his face pensive. "You never know, Demyx. I've known Zexion a lot longer than you have. It's true that he may be getting over a long relationship, but to me it seemed Zexion and Marluxia's relationship was over long before they broke up. And I don't think he would mind dating you if he genuinely liked you.

"But Marluxia really has nothing to do with this, Demyx and you know it. This is about you and Zexion."

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. But I don't know how he would feel dating a man who has kids."

"He doesn't have a problem working for a man with kids, does he?"

"Well no, but that's kind of the whole point of his job, isn't it? Tutoring my children?"

"That's where another advantage lies. Your kids already know him and like him. I heard _Roxas_ raving about his new tutor when I first got here and that kid doesn't like anyone. He's known Sephiroth since birth and he still doesn't like him."

"Sephiroth hates kids and isn't afraid to let them know it," Demyx mumbled through gritted teeth.

"But Zexion doesn't. And like I said before, this is about him."

"I suppose that's true. But I've only known him roughly two months now."

"You'd be asking him out on a date, not for his hand in marriage, Demyx."

"Who's asking for someone's hand in marriage?" Sephiroth asked as he walked into the living room, a disgruntled expression on his face. It probably didn't really help that he had a tumor in the shape of Sora attached to his leg, the boy trying to climb Sephiroth like jungle gym, completely oblivious to the utterly homicidal glare he was receiving.

"No one," Demyx said quickly. In truth, knowing that Sephiroth was Marluxia's best friend, he thought that if the man knew who it was that he liked, he would find someway to talk him out of it once he had finally worked up the courage to ask.

Sephiroth's gaze turned to Cloud who shook his head almost imperceptibly, an obvious _let it go._ And surprisingly enough, for once in his life, Sephiroth did.

o.O.o

The first thing Zexion noticed when he showed up at the Nocturne household the day after Cloud visited his younger brother was just how distracted Demyx was. He barely made eye contact and only seemed to be paying partial attention to his children when they asked him a question or showed him their latest test grades.

Zexion found Demyx's utter distraction completely distracting himself, often finding himself wondering what it was that could have the man so, in essence, out of it.

What Zexion didn't know was that Demyx was still trying to make a decision about something, something pertaining to the tutor himself.

Demyx knew that things would change completely if he asked Zexion out, or confessed his feelings, whether the man said yes or not. If he said yes, then they would progress into something more and it might even affect Zexion's tutoring of his sons, though Demyx didn't really think that this was likely. But if he said no, if Zexion turned him down, that he might find it completely awkward to work in Demyx's household any longer and quit his job, and Demyx was not ready to see the man go.

While gathering his things after the tutoring session ended at 6:00 as it usually did, Zexion noticed that Demyx was nowhere in sight. The blond usually made an appearance right before this time rolled around, either making dinner in the kitchen or running a sweeper upstairs or typing away quickly at the computer in the study. But never before had he been so quiet during the entire session and just after that Zexion needed to find the man to inform him that he would be leaving.

"Do you know where your dad could be?" Zexion asked the boys before they ran off elsewhere into the house.

"I don't know!" Sora said before zooming off to the bathroom, obviously in a hurry.

"He's probably down in the music room," Roxas said, glancing up at Zexion.

"Well, will you tell him that the session is over? I'll just be going."

"We're not allowed to go into the music room," Roxas informed the adult. "Dad's afraid we might break something, well that Sora will break something and he can't just let me in there if he doesn't let Sora in there too. But you can go down there, Zexion. Dad likes you." The steely look in Roxas' eyes as the said that left Zexion to raise an eyebrow.

"Okay then, I'll go tell him. Where is the music room?"

"It's in the basement, through that door in the kitchen next to the closet door," Roxas said, grinning mischievously at Zexion before also taking his leave of the room.

Setting his bag back on the floor, Zexion walked from the dining room to the kitchen, pulling gently on the basement door. He was just about to yell down to Demyx that he was going down when he heard the soft and faint echoings of an acoustic guitar.

Cautiously, he made his way down the stairs, gazing around the first room. It was a family room with a television and a few gaming systems, more photographs adorning the room. Ones of Demyx with the boys on his lap, the boys together. A picture of Demyx grinning widely at the camera, his arms slung over his brother Cloud's shoulders. A picture that Zexion presumed to be from high school, Demyx sitting in the middle of a large group of friends, Ariel to his left, hair shining bright and red in the sunlight.

To the left Zexion saw two doors. The first one was partially open and Zexion saw it to be the laundry room. He made his way over to the next, his knuckles rapping softly on the door.

"Demyx?" he said, and the music instantly stopped.

The door open a moment later, Demyx staring at him, his face pale and brow lightly covered in sweat. "Hi," he said upon seeing who it was. In his hand, Zexion could see him holding the neck of a dark colored guitar.

"Hey," Zexion began, feeling slightly nervous all of a sudden for no reason he could think of. "Um, the session is over and I think that the boys are getting hungry."

Demyx looked back at a clock on the wall, the minute and hour hands of the clock drumsticks. His eyes widened when he took in the time, nearly ten after six by now. "Wow, I completely lost track of time."

"It's alright," Zexion said, feeling his palms grow slightly damp. The urge to stand up on his toes and lick a line from Demyx's ear to his collar bone became great. "I just thought that I should tell you before I left."

"Okay, thanks," Demyx murmured as Zexion turned around and began heading once again from the stairs, despair.

It was on the tip of Zexion's tongue to ask Demyx if there was anything the matter, but he decided against it, figuring that it most likely wasn't his place. If Demyx wanted to talk about it, whatever it was, then he would either say something, or talk about it with someone who he knew better, like his brother. Also, he had the inkling that if he stayed in Demyx's presence much longer, with his hair mussed like that and his face flushed, he would incur a boner the size of Montana and it would not be particularly pretty.

Shrugging almost imperceptibly, Zexion lifted his foot to the first step when he heard Demyx cry, "Wait!"

Turning back around, Zexion gazed at Demyx curiously and Demyx nearly lost his nerve right then.

_Just stay calm, Demyx, you can do this. You can! Just tell him, that's what Cloud said to do. Everyone deserves to know that they're loved. Cloud's a smart guy, he knows what he's talking about, right? Right?!_

Taking a few steps closer to the older man, Demyx stood a few feet away, his eyes darting to the floor before landing on Zexion's once again.

"Well, the truth is," Demyx began, breathing deeply and trying to prevent himself from passing out, "I have…um, _feelings_ for you Zexion. You've probably noticed that I've been acting strangely lately and that's why. I like you…a lot, maybe even more than that." He paused then, taking a deep breath before continuing on. "I know it hasn't been all that long since you got out of a long relationship and I know that it is weird because I hired you to tutor my sons, believe me when I say that I've gone over all the scenarios in my head.

"But, well what I'm trying to ask is if you'd like to go out with me sometime."

In truth, this had not been what Zexion had expected Demyx to say to him, not by a long shot. But he couldn't deny that he was pleased to hear this.

Demyx had been weighing on his mind a lot lately and Zexion was planning on waiting a while to inform the man of the feelings he had developed for him. He was pleasantly surprised at the realization that Demyx beat him to it.

His lips lilted up slightly in a smile, his hand unconsciously tucking slate hair behind an ear. He crossed the distance between their two bodies and whispered into Demyx's ear, "I'd love to," before kissing him softly on the cheek and turning back around to ascend the stairs.

Demyx could only watch him go. Zexion was gone for several seconds before a grin spread across Demyx's face like wildfire. Eventually, after the euphoria dissipated slightly, he, too, climbed the stairs to grab his sons to take them out to dinner.

o.O.o

The next afternoon, just before leaving for the night, Zexion informed Demyx that he had made dinner reservations for Friday at 7:30.

"Now wait a minute," Demyx had replied to this. "I thought that I was the one that had asked you out, not the other way around."

A small grin flitted across Zexion's lips. "That's true, but you just beat me to it. I made this reservation several weeks ago by now," he admitted.

Demyx's eyes snapped up in surprise. "_Weeks_ ago?" he asked, flustered. "How did you know that I was going to say yes if you ever did get around to asking me?"

"I didn't know for sure," Zexion admitted, "but I did hope. Besides, if you did turn me down, I was going to give the reservation to my brother to take his girlfriend out."

Demyx laughed then, a deep belly laugh that rang beautifully through Zexion's ears. After it subsided, Demyx's face relaxed as he glanced somewhat shyly at Zexion. "I think that dinner on Friday sounds wonderful."

Zexion glanced around the room quickly, making sure neither of the younger Nocturnes (or their friends) were anywhere in the general proximity. Finding the room uninhabited other than Demyx and himself, his fingers found the side of the taller man's cheek and he leaned forward, kissing him in a way that was short, quick, and sweet. And Demyx felt it all the way down to his toes, blood quickly rushing to his face.

"I'm glad," Zexion whispered in his ear as he pulled away before grabbing his bag and murmuring a quiet good-bye.

After Zexion left, Demyx wasn't quite sure exactly how long he stood there, just staring at the empty space Zexion had just occupied, his fingers lightly touching the spot on his cheeks where Zexion's fingers had lingered.

Slowly, a grin spread across his face, and he found himself not able to wait for Friday.

o.O.o

It had been on a Tuesday that Demyx had first asked Zexion out. Wednesday had been the day Zexion had finalized their plans (in truth, at that point, Demyx hadn't really been sure what to do or where to go on their date anyway). Thursday was quite a bit awkward between the two. It seemed as if they both stared at the other, but whenever they were caught, each of their eyes were quickly skitter away before returning, guilty smiles plastered across their faces.

Roxas especially seemed to pick up on these exchanges, watching his father gaze upon his tutor from where he stood in the doorway, or likewise, his tutor sneaking peaks at his dad every time Demyx found an excuse to pass through the dining room. Also, he seemed to have come to a resolute conclusion because at one point, Zexion found the boy nodding to himself before returning to his math problems.

Demyx was glad that, despite how awkward the entire tutoring session had been between the two of them, Zexion still sought Demyx out in the kitchen afterwards, pressing him into the counter and kissing him silly. In truth, the tension had been slowly killing him all night. He hadn't meant to be quite that physical or rough with Demyx, but when he felt Demyx's hands land on his hips, pulling their bodies together, all of his worries of getting fired for being unprofessional flew from his mind at the pure heat emitting from Demyx's body. It had nearly killed him to pull away after a few minutes because Zexion had found himself wanting Demyx in a way that he had never wanted anyone else in his entire life.

Afterwards, as Demyx mused how calm and professional Zexion had been able to remain throughout the entire tutoring session, he thought that things just might work themselves out for once.

o.O.o

Friday was, surprisingly so, less awkward than Thursday had been. The session had ended early, around 5:00, as they always did on Fridays. Once again, Zexion sought Demyx out in the kitchen, laying a nearly chaste kiss atop his forehead before announcing that he would be back to pick Demyx up around seven, giving them plenty of time to make it to the restaurant. Demyx had nodded, smiling as the man left.

As Zexion left, Roxas watched his dad with the goofy grin on his face before sprinting out the front door and to Zexion's car before he had the chance to pull out of the driveway.

"Zexion, wait!" he said, coming to halt outside the driver's side door.

"What is it, Roxas?" Zexion asked, worry quickly creeping over his face. "What's the matter?"

"Nothing is the matter," Roxas breathed quickly. "I just wanted to know the truth."

Zexion raised an eyebrow. "The truth?"

The young boy nodded. "Dad says that he is going out to meet a friend later and that Uncle Cloud is coming to watch us. But he wouldn't tell us which friend is was."

Zexion thought it odd that Demyx had agreed for Zexion to pick him up later, but hadn't told the twins that it was him Demyx was "meeting" with. Surely they would see him out the window. He could understand if Demyx didn't want his sons to know he was dating their tutor right away. Their were dozens of factors to consider. What if the twins got attached to Zexion and things didn't work out between them? What if they twins didn't like their dad dating Zexion, dating anyone?

But as Zexion gazed upon the boy before him, already so adult acting, he found himself unable to lie to him.

Sighing, he asked, "What would you like to know, Roxas?"

"Are you dating my dad?" he asked bluntly.

"We aren't dating (yet), but we do have a date later tonight," Zexion admitted, hoping that he wasn't overstepping his bounds concerning Demyx's son.

"My dad likes you a lot, you know," Roxas replied, gauging Zexion's reaction.

"I like your dad a lot."

Breathing deeply for a moment, Roxas said, "My dad has been so sad in his life. I know he tries to be happy for me and Sora, but I know that he is sad a lot. I don't want to see him sad anymore.

"Can you make my dad happy?"

Zexion balked at the question. He had been expecting Roxas to be upset that Demyx and he were going on a date. But Zexion had to admit that he didn't have much first-hand experience with kids since becoming an adult.

Slowly, Zexion smiled at Roxas, placing his hand gently atop blond spikes. "I'm going to try my best, Roxas. If he will let me, I would love to make your dad happy."

Roxas smiled at him then. Zexion had seen Roxas smile perhaps five times in the nearly two months he had been working for Demyx.

o.O.o

Once home, Zexion knew that he didn't really have all that much time to get ready and back to Demyx's house before seven. Quickly, he showered and put on the clothes he had laid out that morning for their date. However, once he had the clothes on and gazed at himself, he found himself unhappy with the result. No matter which way he twisted and turned, he was unhappy with the way the slacks clung to his thighs and the jacket looked over his shoulders. Eventually, he glanced at the clock and saw that he exactly fifteen minutes to get back to Demyx's house.

He sighed, grabbing his keys and heading out the door.

Twelve minutes later (Zexion later admitted that he had been speeding on the country roads that took him between the two cities), he arrived at Demyx's house, noticing a motorcycle parked in the grass. Vaguely, he recognized that it was the motorcycle Cloud always rode around in. Zexion took a deep breath before stepping from his car and walking up to the front door.

Zexion honestly could not remember the last time that he had been quite this nervous about anything. He wanted this _thing_ with Demyx to work so badly, but he didn't want to push the man either. He figured that he would let Demyx set the pace of whatever relationship they were to have, if one at all.

After taking another, deeper breath, Zexion curled his fingers into a fist and gently knocked on the door.

A moment later, the door opened to reveal Cloud Strife and Sora, who was using his uncle like a jungle gym.

"Hi Zexion!" Sora squealed as Cloud's fingers descended and tickled the boy's tummy.

"Hi Sora, Hello Cloud."

Cloud briefly smiled at him and said, "Why don't you come in. I don't think Demyx is quite ready yet. There was some kind of accident with Roxas trying to do the laundry and using too much soap, I think. Demyx was still cleaning the bubbles up when I got here."

"Oh my," Zexion said before briefly chuckling.

Zexion, following Cloud's lead, sat on the couch. Sora promptly evacuated his uncle's lap and settled on Zexion's.

"Sora!" Cloud said quickly. "You're going to wrinkle Zexion's clothes. Didn't you see how nice they were when he walked in?"

Sora nodded guiltily before scrambling off Zexion's lap and back onto his uncle's. Cloud wrapped his arms around the boy and said, "Sora, people wear nice clothes when they go out on dates. Remember earlier when I said that Zexion is going on a date with your dad?"

Again, Sora nodded, his eyes glancing between Cloud and Zexion. "Why do people have to wear nice clothes when they go on dates?" he asked.

"Well," Cloud began, "they want to impress the person they are going on the date with. Nice clothes impress people," he finished with a laugh. Zexion couldn't help but smile in return.

Demyx walked out a few minutes later, Roxas holding his hand. Immediately, Zexion stood, his breath catching roughly in his throat. Demyx's button down shirt was nearly the color of his eyes, and the jacket spread elegantly over his broad shoulders.

Gulping slightly, Zexion murmured, "You look wonderful, Demyx." His throat was dry and his voice came out hoarse.

A deep blush quickly rose on Demyx's cheeks as his eyes glanced down Zexion's own body, before slowly rising back up to meet his eyes. "So do you," he replied, offering Zexion a wide, nervous smile.

"Are you going to kiss now, Daddy?" Sora asked innocently from Cloud's lap.

Cloud found himself unable to hold back his laughter, the sound of it ringing through the room.

"Maybe later," Demyx replied, if possible, blushing harder than before.

And Zexion grinned at him. Demyx, despite whatever embarrassment he still felt, couldn't help but grin back.

o.O.o

As it turned out, Demyx knew the hostess at the restaurant Zexion took him too. Her name was Lila, an old classmate of Demyx's, and she gave them a great window table with a fantastic view of the beach. As she seated them, she flashed Demyx a somewhat surprised but pleased grin, setting menus down in front of the two of them before practically cooing into Demyx's ear that their waiter would be with them shortly.

Zexion's eyes went way up when the girl bent over, giving Demyx a face full of her ample cleavage. As he watched her walk away, Zexion couldn't help but laugh at the girl, who had seemed to put an extra bounce in her step the Zexion didn't remember her having as she seated them.

"Well," he said after a moment, "I'm surprised that she didn't ask you to come home with her."

"What?" Demyx asked, confused. He saw Zexion's eyes flicker back to the hostess and he laughed. "Oh, she's always been that way, flirty. Besides, someone once told me that she gets off on guys, well, together."

"Interesting," Zexion mused, opening his menu and gazing at the wine list.

Demyx frowned slightly as his date. "That didn't bother you, did it? I'm really sorry if you are upset, Zexion."

Zexion furrowed his brow as he looked up the self-doubting expression on Demyx's face. "Demyx, don't worry about it. You are a very attractive man and, honestly, I would be more surprised if people _didn't_ notice that. It just startled me a bit when she shoved her breasts in your face, that's all."

Demyx grinned at Zexion then, his cerulean eyes alighting mischievously. "You know, Zexion, you're all kinds of cute when you're jealous."

Zexion sputtered then. "I-I wasn't jealous, I just-"

"Zexion, don't worry about it. It's nice, actually. It's been a real long time since anyone was jealous over me."

Sighing, Zexion admitted, "Okay, maybe I was a bit jealous. It's just that I have been really excited about our date together, about spending more time with you, and I, well…kind of want you all to myself."

Demyx flushed, though not as badly as he had earlier. Coughing slightly, he said, "I've been really looking forward to this too, Zexion. You have no idea how nice it is to hear that you've been looking forward to this, to being with me."

Frowning slightly, Zexion asked, "What do you mean, Demyx?"

Their waiter came then, taking their drink orders, bringing the drinks out a few moments later. When he returned, they ordered their meals.

"Can you explain to me what you meant?"

Demyx looked out the window, watching as the dark blue waves washed ashore. "I never really had the chance to date much, you know? The first time I kissed someone was also the first time I had sex. And she got _pregnant_. Then, suddenly I had these two huge responsibilities; Roxas and Sora. I was only sixteen, Zexion. I never got to go on dates and I never went to the Prom. Sora had the flu that night.

"And now, I'm only twenty-two years old and I have two six year old boys at home. That doesn't exactly make me very popular at the dating water cooler, if you know what I mean. Most people my age don't want to be burdened with someone else's kids, they'd rather be out partying."

"It doesn't bother me," Zexion said, "that fact that you have kids."

Demyx smiled at him briefly. "You'd be jobless if I didn't." But Demyx was touched nevertheless by Zexion's honest statement.

"You have a point," Zexion admitted. "But what I am trying to say is that I admire you, Demyx. If I was in your position, I don't know what I would do. I admire you."

Again, Demyx's eyes glanced out the window. "I don't know about that," he said after a moment, eyes landing on Zexion's once again. "I made a mistake. I wouldn't say that I'm paying for it because I love my boys more than anything else in the world, but I do have to live with my mistake. I had to grow up so fast."

"Hm," Zexion said noncommittally. He hardly knew what it was like become a parent, especially at such a young age. It was true enough that he had played a big part in raising Hayner after their dad left them for the war, pronounced missing in action for more than a year before he was identified. Then their mom got sick, but Hayner was only four years younger than Zexion and was mostly grown when he moved in with Zexion after their mom passed.

A while later, their food arrived and they both dug in. Between bites, Zexion looked up at Demyx and said, "You never talk about your job much. I'm not even sure if I quite know what you do."

"I'm a teacher, actually," Demyx admitted, smiling.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I teach at Sora and Roxas' school actually. I'm the music teacher there."

"Wow, I had no idea. Teaching must be very rewarding."

"I think so," Demyx said with a smile. "But it is only my first year. I just got my degree in January and substituted until I got hired full time. But what about you? How did you like working in research?"

Zexion thought about for a moment. "Honestly, I'm not sure if I ever really cared for it much. The pay was amazing and I was able to pay off my student loans by the time I was twenty-four. That much was really helpful because Hayner is still in school and it means that he doesn't have to take out as many loans. I live a rather simple life without many needs. It makes me feel good to help him out. He might not be able to go to school otherwise, without the financial assistance."

"What do you mean?" Demyx asked, interested.

"Well, Hayner was never very good at school. It's not that he wasn't smart, it's just that he had so much trouble focusing in school and on his school work that it got him into trouble. He does get quite a bit of money because of mom and dad."

"Because of your mom and dad?"

Zexion nodded briefly, becoming lost in his thoughts. "Well, for one we were orphans. And two, Dad died in the war. It sounds crass to admit it, but it is probably because of that that Hayner was able to get into school at all."

"Wow Zexion, I'm really sorry."

"Demyx," Zexion chided briefly. "You hardly need to apologize for something no one can control, least of all you. Besides, from what Yuffie told me, you didn't exactly have it easy after your parents passed."

"She told you about that?" Demyx asked.

Zexion nodded. Laughing, he added, "She also told me that I'm pathetically weak."

Demyx let out a bark of laughter and Zexion was glad that whatever tension had existed between them since the beginning of their date had officially dissipated.

o.O.o

Zexion was pretty sure that they had over-stayed their welcome at the restaurant. At one point, Demyx had moved his chair so it was right next to Zexion's. Zexion could see the hostess, Lila, glaring at him as Demyx laid his hand on Zexion's arm. Zexion chose to ignore her.

Demyx's cheeks were a bit pink from the empty wine bottle that waiter had eventually left at their table. Eventually, Lila walked up to their table, announcing that the restaurant was closing before walking away with a huff. After paying, the two made their way back out to Zexion's car.

After putting the key in the ignition and seat belt on, Zexion began pulling out of the parking lot. Next to him, Demyx turned to face him. From the corner of his eye, Zexion could see that Demyx appeared nervous.

"Zexion?" he asked after a moment's hesitation.

"What is it, Demyx?" Zexion asked, frowning slightly. He certainly hoped that Demyx wasn't drunk enough to throw up. Zexion knew that Demyx had been legally allowed to drink for more than a year now, but he kind of figured that he had done a lot more drinking in his life than Demyx ever had. He barely felt buzzed, but he had no idea how Demyx handled alcohol.

Hesitating a moment, Demyx said, "I'd rather not go home now. Not just yet."

"Where do you want to go, Demyx?" Zexion asked, still peeking at the man from the corner of his eye.

"Do you think that we could…go back to your place? That is, if it's alright with you," he added, eyes focused on his folded hands that rested in his lap.

Gulping, Zexion said, "We could do that. If you want to, that is." He stopped his car at the red light and turned to face Demyx. Briefly, his hand lay across Demyx's still folded hands. "But it really is up to you, Demyx. I don't want to push you at all. I really want this to work."

Demyx freed his hands and picked Zexion's up, holding it between both of his hands. "I want to," he said before kissing Zexion's palm.

"You should call Cloud then, and see if he is willing to stay. I don't know if I'll be in any condition to drive you back home."

Even in the dark, Zexion could tell Demyx was blushing. "Actually, I already asked Cloud. Earlier today, before you picked me up."

Zexion smiled at Demyx. "Okay then," he said. And he turned the car around, heading in the direction of his apartment.

Roughly ten minutes later, they were at Zexion's front door. After unlocking it, Zexion held the door open for Demyx, following him inside a moment later. Flipping the light switch on, the two looked at each other for roughly 1.4 seconds before they were lost in a tangle of entwined limbs and wandering fingers.

Zexion led Demyx to his bedroom by feel. It was difficult and they got stopped many times by gropes and grabs, but eventually they got there, their clothing flying off with super speed.

Zexion wasn't even worried about the fact that his freshly dry-cleaned and pressed suit was in a heap on the floor. He was only aware of Demyx under his fingertips and Demyx's hot breath on his face.

Afterwards, the two lay facing each other, legs still entwined. Zexion's hand was on Demyx's cheek, his fingertips playing with his sandy blond hair.

"I can't remember the last time I had an orgasm brought on by something other than my hand," Demyx said with a chuckle.

"Glad to know I was of service to you," Zexion murmured before adding, "I don't think I've ever come that hard, that much in my entire life."

Demyx grinned. "Well, I'm glad to know that _I _was of service to _you." _

They were quiet for a moment before Zexion asked, "Cloud will be alright with the boys for the night?"

Demyx nodded. "He was actually happy to be able to watch them tonight. Sephiroth doesn't let Cloud see the boys as much as he would like."

"He's very possessive, isn't he?"

Demyx nodded. "Very possessive. For as much as I want to see Cloud happy, I sometimes wish he'd dump Sephiroth. He treats Cloud like an object."

"I'm sure that Cloud will eventually get fed up with it and _will_ dump him."

They fell asleep a little while later, foreheads pressed gently together.

o.O.o

Zexion was dreaming. He was aware that he was dreaming, and he could hear someone calling his name. He chose to ignore this because the dream was so nice, Demyx and he making love under a blanket of stars.

But then came the shaking and he knew that he had to get up.

"Zexion? Zexion?" the voice, Demyx's, asked.

"What is it?" he asked, groggy.

"Someone's at the door, Zexion."

"Just let them knock," Zexion replied.

"Zexion, they've been knocking for almost ten minutes."

"Okay, I'll get up."

Swinging his legs out of bed, Zexion walked to his drawer and grabbed clean boxers, not wanting to feel around on the dark floor for yesterdays.

"Do you want me to come with you?" Demyx asked.

"No, Dem, just go back to sleep. I'll be back in a minute, okay?"

"Okay."

About a minute later, Zexion was at the front door, unlocking it.

"It's about _time_, Zexion," a haughty voice said, and Zexion's eyes snapped up.

Standing before him was none other than Marluxia. "What are you doing here?" Zexion asked, feeling himself quickly growing angry. "You're not supposed to come here anymore."

Marluxia chose to ignore this, instead going on to say, "I've had an absolutely wretched night. I'll have you know that Vexen broke up with me."

"I fail to see what that has to do with me," Zexion snapped.

"I'm lonely, Zexion. Can't I stay here tonight?"

"Actually, no you can't," Zexion replied, trying to push the man from the doorway so he could close the door.

"What's going on, Zexion?" Demyx asked from hall, walking into the living room.

Zexion watched Marluxia's face fall into a sneer. "What the fuck is Cloud's little brother doing here, Zexion?" he snapped.

Zexion replied, "What does it look like, Marluxia?"

Marluxia grew quiet, until Demyx stepped closer to Zexion, wrapping an arm around his waist and replying, "We're together."

After glaring at Demyx, Marluxia's eyes snapped back to Zexion. "You can't be serious, Zexion. You dumped me for Cloud's little brother? He's barely done with puberty, Zexion. And did you know that he had two _kids_ at home?"

"I am perfectly aware that he has two children. And yes, it is true. We are together."

Marluxia laughed then. "Well, if you're with Zexion now, _Demyx_, then you should know that Zexion and I have fucked recently."

Demyx's eyes landed, unsure, on Zexion, his arm slackening slightly. Zexion took action then, shoving Marluxia out the door before slamming it shut and locking it.

"I'm getting a restraining order!" he shouted.

And then he turned to Demyx. They were silent for a moment before Demyx, in a quite voice, asked, "Is it true, Zexion? Have you slept with Marluxia recently?"

Zexion sighed then. "I haven't slept with Marluxia for more then two months. Not since the day we first met. We had broken up weeks before, but he had been harassing my brother and I called him to yell. He took it as an invitation and one thing led to another. I was upset and drunk."

Zexion took a step closer to Demyx, his hands taking Demyx's. "Demyx, I swear to you that I haven't had sex with Marluxia in more than two months. He just likes to create trouble when he doesn't get what he wants."

"Okay," Demyx replied, smiling slightly at Zexion. He pulled Zexion towards him, his head bowing for a kiss. And just like that, they found themselves using their hands to find the bedroom for the second time that night.

o.O.o

For years to come, Demyx is able to identify the single moment that he fell in love with Zexion Schemer.

He had awoken to find the bed empty. After taking a moment for his eyes to adjust, Demyx glanced around the room. He found a digital clock on the night stand, the clock informing him that it was 2:34.

Through the closed bedroom door, Demyx was able to hear faint music. Swinging his legs over the side of the bed, he found his underwear and slid them up his legs before slipping out of the room. He followed the music to the living room where he found Zexion, fingers moving gracefully over the keys of a piano that he had not noticed earlier in the night. Not that anyone could blame him.

From the doorway, Demyx watched Zexion play. It was a beautiful melody that he'd never heard before. He stood quietly until the song ended before walking up to Zexion, standing behind him and uttering softly, "You play beautifully, you know."

Zexion jumped at the voice, turning to gaze up at Demyx. "I didn't know you were up. I'm sorry if I woke you."

"It was worth it," Demyx whispered, leaning down to kiss Zexion briefly. As he pulled away, he saw the moonlight dance in Zexion's dark blue eyes.

And Demyx found himself completely mesmerized by the person before him.

o.O.o

Demyx found the bed empty when he woke up that morning. Slipping out of bed, Demyx pulled on his boxers for the second time before locating the bathroom he had seen at some point the night before. After relieving himself, he wandered out into the living room. It hurt Demyx's eyes somewhat, remnants of the consumed wine the night before.

When he saw that Zexion wasn't there, Demyx proceeded to the kitchen.

He did find someone in the kitchen, but the man was definitely _not _Zexion. Demyx saw that the man had sandy blond hair and big brown eyes. He was dressed in a tank top and camouflage shorts, eating what looked like a bowl of Lucky Charms.

"Hi," Demyx said uncertainly.

"Hi," the man said, looking up from the magazine he had been reading. "You must be Demyx. Zexion told me not to wake you up. I didn't, did I?" he asked.

"No," Demyx said quickly. He stood there for a moment, gazing around the kitchen before his eyes landed again on the man. "I don't mean to be rude, but I don't know who you are."

The man laughed then, choking somewhat on the hearts, stars, and horseshoes. "Sorry," he said after recovering slightly. "I'm Hayner, Zexion's brother."

"Oh okay," Demyx said, taking a seat at the small table. "Zexion didn't tell me anyone was coming over."

"That's my fault," Hayner said. "I just sort of showed up last night. Zexion finally gave me a key, so I crashed on the couch. I forgot that he told me he had a date." After a minute, seeing that Demyx still looked pretty uncomfortable, Hayner added, "My girlfriend and I broke up again, so I came here. Actually, when we break up, I always come here. She deadbolts the door."

"I'm sorry that you broke up with your girlfriend," Demyx said.

"It's okay," Hayner said with a shrug. "We'll probably be back together by dinner. And if we aren't, then I'll worry about it. Oh, you probably don't know that Zexion left for a minute. He'll be back soon."

Almost as if on cue, Zexion walked in the door a moment later, entering the kitchen and setting down several bags of groceries. "Hayner, I told you that I was cooking breakfast."

"I know, but I was hungry!" Hayner whined. "Besides, I can guarantee that I will still be able to eat whatever you cook too."

After he had deposited the bags on the counter, Zexion walked to where Demyx sat, planting a kiss atop the blond's head. "Sorry I wasn't there when you woke up, but I realized I hadn't been grocery shopping for a very long time."

"It's okay," Demyx murmured with a smile. Zexion grinned back and Hayner just rolled his eyes.

Zexion began making breakfast, first asking Demyx what he did and didn't like for breakfast. Demyx had replied that anything Zexion wanted to make was fine. Twenty minutes later, a stack of pancakes, sausage, eggs, and toast lay in the center of the small table.

The three of them ate in near silence until Demyx, after glancing at the kitchen clock and realizing that it was nearly eleven, announced that he had to get back to his sons. Zexion followed Demyx back to the bed room and watched him get dressed.

As Demyx was buttoning his shirt, Zexion walked up to and sought Demyx's lips. After they pulled away, Demyx grinned down at Zexion. "Would you like to come over for dinner later?" he asked, face flushed.

"I'd love to," Zexion murmured.

"If your brother isn't back with his girlfriend by then, bring him too," Demyx added before heading out the door, brushing off Zexion's offers of driving him back home and assuring Zexion that he would catch a cab home.

With that, Demyx turned on his heel and exited the room. Zexion could hear Demyx and Hayner exchange quick good-byes before the front door shut.

A moment later, Zexion left his bed room and sat down next to his brother on the couch. Some sitcom or another was on the television was on. After a moment, Hayner hit the pause button on the remote before turning to his brother and grinning.

"Zexion, you are in love."

Stunned, all Zexion could do was nod, because Hayner was right. And after a minute, he found himself grinning too.

o.O.o

**A/N: Reviews are nice ways to let me know what you think of this little story!**

**webofdreams89**


End file.
